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Planets Holosia, Mestrios and Arcton; The definitive evolution experiment
Topic Started: Feb 19 2010, 05:22 AM (453 Views)
Dorylus
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I know i have Vorices, but i have an idea for a planet.Well, planets. Unfortunately, it borrows and adapts an idea from anthropomundus. Humans and an alien race of about the same technology level called the Atria in the future genetically engineer residents for the planets Holosia, Mestrios and Arcton. These planets are lifeless. They are the biggest experiments ever. They are designed so that the same creatures are placed on each planet to see what happens to the evolutionary paths with the same starting point but different resources.

This project is designed to follow three locations and three time zones(25, 50 and 100 million years later).
I propose two ideas both involving two other users co-operating this experiment.
1: I focus on Holosia, while two other users focus on Arkton and Mestrios. The other two users therefore have as much ownership of the project as i.
2: I focus on 25 million years later. Two other users focus on 50 and 100 million years later. Similar ownership conditions to the previous.
Initial creatures can be submitted by the community and better yet, two users can look after the two other mini projects. I personally prefer to look after a planet.
Please give feedback, but do not flame the idea.

PS What the planets are like is up to whoever wants to help. I chose Holosia because i like the name the most. The point is to see the effect of time and location. Therefore there are nine settings: Holosia 25 million years later, Holosia 50 million years later, Holosia 100 million years later, Mestrios 25 million years later, Mestrios 50 million years later, Mestrios 100 million years later, Arkton 25 million years later, Arkton 50 million years later and Arkton 100 million years later. Actually, a user can own each setting.

The conditions on each planet need to be similar enough so that proto creatures can survive on all planets.
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Holben
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Rumbo a la Victoria

(Have you seen the Genesis topic?)

Are you going to flesh out the Atria?
Time flows like a river. Which is to say, downhill. We can tell this because everything is going downhill rapidly. It would seem prudent to be somewhere else when we reach the sea.

"It is the old wound my king. It has never healed."
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Dorylus
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I was not aware of Genesis. If this is similar enough to it i suggest that this topic gets deleted.
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Holben
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Rumbo a la Victoria

No, i was just asking if the similiarities were superficial, the animals must be completely different.
Time flows like a river. Which is to say, downhill. We can tell this because everything is going downhill rapidly. It would seem prudent to be somewhere else when we reach the sea.

"It is the old wound my king. It has never healed."
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Ddraig Goch
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Ar hyd y nos

Here's a link to Genesis. It's a similar idea, but only on one planet.
Save the Blibbering Humdinger from extinction!
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Dorylus
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The atria are segmented(but endoskeletal) aliens that have three legs to stand on and two arms as manipulators. Their' hands end in seven tendrils of varying size that are very flexible yet very strong. There are no feet, the legs are just blade like straight to the surface they stand on. The head has three armour-like plates that show the eyes and face underside. These open up to reveal a slug like head with three "jaws" with short but dense and curved teeth. There is no tongue as taste receptors line the inside of the real head, but people often call the actual head a tongue. The Atria find this annoying but they bear it. They are hunchbacked, but the back is hard and bears spikes that can erect and go limp at will. Despite their' appearance they are benevolent and have superior genetic technology. Also they range from a dull dark purple to a lighter cyan kind of colour. There are albino Atria, they are white like human albinoes(because no pigment means that all light is reflected rather than absorbed).
The partnership above was struck because evolution and it's possibilities was mutually interesting. Earth had more species to work with and Arkhelios(the Atria's home planet) had more organism diversity. But humans work with both alien and familiar organisms and plants as do the Atria.
This is supposedly the single greatest experiment ever requiring three planets devoid of life but with Earthlike or Arkhelionic conditions. The planets had to be similar enough that GM life was suitable for all.
Also, it will now change from a macroevolution to microevolution study.

Holosia has a thin dense atmosphere composed of on average denser gases. The overall surface gravity is lower than Earth, as the rock is less dense.
This opens up greater possibility for a wealth of gargantuan or avian life. Holosia is noted though to have smaller areas of each biome that are more frequent. This opens up a greater possibility for seeing difference in evolution on a single planet, but also there will be less specimens of each species in an area.

Mestrios has the least dense atmosphere, lowest gravity and on average lowest temperature.
It is less favourable to fast growing, gargantuan or more mobile organisms, and is more favourable to energy economy. Plants cannot grow quickly but they can reach great heights.
It is also the driest planet. It has large areas of each biome but biomes are lower in quantity. It offers larger amounts of each species but less species altogether. This means it is less favourable for studying evolution difference within a single planet.

Arcton is the largest planet with the densest atmosphere and highest gravity. It is favourable to more robust species. It is also favourable to powered flyers as opposed to gliders or floaters. Plants have the capacity to grow faster but not as tall therefore living shorter more active lives.

(note that differences are not very great, as all proto-creatures have to survive on all planets)

The outlook is that:
Holosia will have faster evolution and greater diversity.
Mestrios will have the largest plants and smallest animals, and lowest diversity.
Arcton will have the largest animals and smallest plants, as well as great diversity and larger amounts of each species.

Proto creature 1:
Name: Cluster shoot("plant")
Anatomy: Like a rather long and very thin cylinder with very small holes running up the side. Flower is in the form of a dull coloured but scent releasing spike. Fruit is just a swelling of the top of the plant, accompanied by a colour change and powerful scent. The spike is absorbed back into the plant for it to grow. The swelling loosens off the stem so that it may be pulled off. The plant can regrow from injury if it is not too heavily damaged.
Diet: Photosynthetic products(photosynthesises through stem).
Behaviour: Grows rather quickly and in groups. Concentrates where there is highest nutriment. Prefers softer and wetter terrain.
Trivia: Derived from an organism made of a cross of a cactus and a bulrush, both Terran.
Edited by Dorylus, Feb 22 2010, 11:30 AM.
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